Air India is updating its travel policy for employees flying domestically, as reported by The Times of India, and I’m impressed by the extent to which it involves leading by example…
In this post:
Air India’s new domestic staff travel policy
Air India is updating its policy for employees traveling domestically on official business. This applies across the board, whether we’re talking about the CEO traveling somewhere for a conference, or a pilot deadheading somewhere to operate a flight.
As of April 1, 2025 (and as of June 1, 2025, for pilots), the default class of travel for all Air India employees is economy on domestic flights. That means every type of employee (including the CEO) will only be confirmed in economy when traveling domestically on official business.
Then 50 minutes before departure, once all passengers have had the opportunity to pay for business class or to upgrade, employees will be eligible for space available upgrades to premium economy or business class.
Up until now, select corporate employees and pilots have received positive space business class seats, but that will no longer be the case. This policy change comes a couple of years after Air India’s privatization, as the airline is aggressively retrofitting narrow body planes with smaller business class cabins, and new premium economy cabins.
The airline wants these seats to be available to paying customers as much as possible, as the company has reportedly seen the number of domestic premium seats that are sold double since privatization.
I appreciate the travel policy’s consistency!
I very much appreciate the intent behind Air India’s updated policy, which is to preserve premium cabins first for those who are looking to pay for seats, before assigning those premium seats to employees. I respect how the company really is taking a top down approach here, as this even applies to the CEO.
It’s quite a contrast to what we see in the US. Of course senior executives at airlines all get positive space premium seating. Not only that, but pilots at most US airlines also now receive priority for first class when deadheading.
Specifically, if they’re traveling in order to position to work a flight, they’ll be on the upgrade list ahead of paying passengers on the day of departure. Ultimately this has been negotiated as part of the latest contracts that have been ratified, so that’s something they’re entitled to, and it’s not a courtesy that the airline provides out of the kindness of its heart.
I’m always conflicted on the topic of airline employees being confirmed in premium cabins in advance. On the one hand, the optics aren’t great when you promise paying customers a certain benefit (like space available upgrades), and then they end up going to employees. On the other hand, it’s also not unreasonable to think that a senior executive at a major corporation in India would fly in a premium cabin for their business travel. But again, that gets at the culture of leading by example, and I respect that very much.
Bottom line
Air India is updating its domestic travel policy for employees. With this change, all Air India employees will be confirmed into economy for official company travel domestically, and they’ll only receive premium cabin seats on a space available basis, 50 minutes before departure.
This policy shift comes as Air India is reducing the size of its business class cabins on some jets, while also introducing premium economy. The emphasis is on selling these seats as much as possible, especially with the increased demand for premium seats.
What do you make of Air India’s updated employee travel policy?
What a joke! Have you ever been on a AI flight with a half empty business cabin (and F too) and watched both completely fill up 10 minutes after the door closes with AI employees mainly out of uniform?
Pity the paying seatmates; their needs come a distant second to the incessant demands of the squatters who are catered to royally by their on-duty compatriots, even to the point of snaffling all the best...
What a joke! Have you ever been on a AI flight with a half empty business cabin (and F too) and watched both completely fill up 10 minutes after the door closes with AI employees mainly out of uniform?
Pity the paying seatmates; their needs come a distant second to the incessant demands of the squatters who are catered to royally by their on-duty compatriots, even to the point of snaffling all the best food and booze.
Will that change? Nah, it's India we're talking about, aren't we?
Tata seems to be putting some effort into modernizing the Air India fleet and improving product. Having said that, operational issues, inconsistent service quality, and a reputation for poor customer experience remain significant reasons why I avoid them. Whether it's the notorious business class whizzer (and Air Indias appalling response), the clogged toilets and bomb threats, or their worst first class in the world, I wouldn't fly Air India unless it was a "last flight...
Tata seems to be putting some effort into modernizing the Air India fleet and improving product. Having said that, operational issues, inconsistent service quality, and a reputation for poor customer experience remain significant reasons why I avoid them. Whether it's the notorious business class whizzer (and Air Indias appalling response), the clogged toilets and bomb threats, or their worst first class in the world, I wouldn't fly Air India unless it was a "last flight out of Kabul" scenario.
In my opinion, your observations regarding employee travel are misleading.
Please distinguish clearly between non-rev travel for leisure and confirmed travel in the course of employment.
Cabin and flight crew deadheading are travelling in their "course of employment" and are subject to collective bargaining agreements.
Most airlines differentiate between Captains and all other flight and cabin crews. Most airlines only upgrade working crew after revenue pax.
Other than long-haul international, it...
In my opinion, your observations regarding employee travel are misleading.
Please distinguish clearly between non-rev travel for leisure and confirmed travel in the course of employment.
Cabin and flight crew deadheading are travelling in their "course of employment" and are subject to collective bargaining agreements.
Most airlines differentiate between Captains and all other flight and cabin crews. Most airlines only upgrade working crew after revenue pax.
Other than long-haul international, it is a rare...very rare...flight where working or leisure travelling employees are upgraded.
There are frequent occurrences where employees travelling in a confirmed premium seat utilising a service pass ( 25 years+) have been downgraded ( improperly) to accommodate a revenue passenger with elite status.
Cutting costs by removing the motivators to work hard and get into higher positions. And it's done by Air India.
What can I say, looking forward to see the new A350s flying with broken seats and clogged toilets, with executives sitting in Business from the beginning.
Why am I not surprised.
An airline wanting their customers to "visualise yourself flying Qsuites or Air France or JAL or something of that kind! ;)", instead of coming up with an actually viable plan.
In my experience you book business and AI change the aircraft to all economy !
Knowing how India works, the CEO and upper management will simply “get” upgraded at the gate. Meaning someone will be downgraded and offered miles as compensation.
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Eskimo Guest
March 25, 2025, 7:53 am
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Snowflakes, eh? Guest
March 25, 2025, 3:22 pm
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1 more replyThat's why all those Westerners will always be snowflakes, fairness and equality. We have Modirajas and dalits.
And no Rahul, that's not how India actually works. That's how they want the public to believe.
Like elsewhere in the world, they would rig the system. They will undersell the cabin by what ever seat they need. No one gets compensated.
Snowflakes, huh? In India, approximately 20-30 mob violence incidents annually are linked to perceived religious insults (conservative estimate, true numbers likely higher).
In the rest of the world, over 100 deaths have been documented annually from blasphemy-related attacks, concentrated in Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Iran, with significant violence targeting religious minorities and secular critics.
In the US, there are zero documented blasphemy-related attacks. Which is not to say that the US is doing great on...
Snowflakes, huh? In India, approximately 20-30 mob violence incidents annually are linked to perceived religious insults (conservative estimate, true numbers likely higher).
In the rest of the world, over 100 deaths have been documented annually from blasphemy-related attacks, concentrated in Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Iran, with significant violence targeting religious minorities and secular critics.
In the US, there are zero documented blasphemy-related attacks. Which is not to say that the US is doing great on violence overall - that's another story.
Seems like snowflake behavior to attack or kill someone just because they don't share your reverence for their god(s).
They may pay the CEO 100 million dollars but he has to buy his own business class seats! A victory for the proletariat!
Honestly this policy and the confirmed business travel policy at other airlines is none of our business.
Hi Ben, I think you meant “business”:
“…be eligible for space available upgrades to premium economy or economy.”
Hey Ben, what happened to some of the other blog writers? Awhile back I’d see Tiffany every once in a while or another guest writer. Just curious.